Leah Charles-King is a multi-award-winning broadcaster, author, international speaker, event host, and mental health advocate. With twenty-five years' experience on screen, Leah is best known for hosting Channel 4's 'A Place in the Sun'. She is also a passionate mental health campaigner who speaks openly about navigating life with bipolar disorder. As a speaker, her keynotes explore themes of mental health, Black representation, workplace culture, resilience and identity. Leah is also an experienced moderator, facilitator, panelist and conference chair, making her a dynamic choice for a range of events.
Leah entered the entertainment industry as a member of girl group Kléshay in 1995, and later supported Lionel Richie on his European arena tour. From there, she transitioned into children's TV and broadcasting, becoming CITV's first Black female continuity presenter. She was also the first on-air talent to launch BET International across the UK and Europe. In 2019, she broadcast the BBC One “Bipolar and Me” report on The One Show, reaching over 8.8 million viewers. That same year, she became a Bipolar UK Ambassador, advocating for greater awareness and regularly hosting awareness conferences such as World Bipolar Day.
Alongside broadcasting, Leah is the creator and co-host of the 'Bipolar Unfiltered' podcast and author of 'Thriving with Bipolar: A Personal and Practical Guide to Living Well'. For her impact in the industry, Leah has been recognised with several awards, including the Screen Nation Award for Best Presenter, the Media Award at the Wise Women Awards, and three TRIC Awards as part of the 'A Place in the Sun' presenting team. She has also been named Best TV & Radio Presenter by Divas of Colour, named Personality of the Year at the C-Hub Awards, and won Best Presenter at the JPA Awards.
With 100,000+ hours of live, unscripted television presenting and hosting experience, Leah is a trusted addition to conferences, events and panels. Past engagements include hosting the Multicultural Inspire Awards, the Back To Black Awards at BAFTA, and moderating the Children's Media Conference. She has also hosted the Bipolar UK Annual Conference for six consecutive years and delivered a keynote for the International Society for Bipolar Disorders in Iceland. Bringing warmth, wit and honesty, Leah combines lived experience with decades of professional communication expertise to help audiences move beyond awareness and towards practical change. Secure Leah Charles-King with Champions Speakers today!
Leah Charles-King's official speaking topics are listed below:
THRIVING, NOT JUST SURVIVING
Engaging, story-led keynotes with practical takeaways across mental health, lived experience, Black mental health, representation, reinvention and workplace wellbeing.
LIVED EXPERIENCE: MORE THAN A STORY
A timely keynote on why lived experience must influence decisions, services and workplace culture — not simply be invited into the room to tell a story.
BLACK MENTAL HEALTH: BREAKING STIGMA, BUILDING SUPPORT
An honest exploration of stigma, cultural expectations, representation, asking for help and what meaningful mental health support looks like within Black communities.
STRONG BLACK WOMAN? AT WHAT COST?
A powerful conversation about perceived strength, masking, vulnerability, workplace pressure and the emotional cost of always being expected to cope — and deliver.
WHEN MENTAL ILLNESS DOESN’T LOOK LIKE MENTAL ILLNESS
A workplace-focused keynote about high-functioning in mental illness, masking and why “they seem fine” can be one of the most dangerous assumptions we make.
REINVENTION IS A SURVIVAL SKILL
From music to television, radio, advocacy, authorship and speaking: a keynote about resilience, navigating rejection, industry change, identity and the courage to build a new chapter.
Official Feedback From In-Person & Virtual Events:
“We had more staff attend Leah’s talk than we typically see at our internal conferences. Her openness and honesty had a real impact across the organisation.” — Sonia, Bank of England
“This was one of the best webinars Bipolar UK has ever delivered. Leah’s ability to connect, communicate and bring real understanding to the topic was outstanding. ” — Sarah, Bipolar UK
“Leah is absolutely phenomenal. Her work to normalise conversations around mental health is both powerful and inspiring. ” — Will, The Telegraph
“Leah is reliable, stunningly professional and easy to work with. She’s an incredibly safe pair of hands.” — Tru Powell, CEO, Inspire Awards
“Leah hosted a fantastic event. We had a packed house.” — Shauna Roper, HSBC
“Leah is bringing significant visibility to the conversation around bipolar. We deeply admire her work.” — Heston Blumenthal OBE & Melanie Blumenthal
- 2026 - Author of 'Thriving with Bipolar: A Personal and Practical Guide to Living Well'
- 2023 - Creator and co-host of the 'Bipolar Unfiltered' podcast
- 2021 - TV Presenter on Channel 4’s 'A Place in the Sun'
- 2019 - Bipolar UK Ambassador
- 2019 - Broadcast the BBC One 'Bipolar and Me' report, which reached 8.8 million viewers
- 2001 - Live Continuity Presenter for ITV
- 1995 - Sony Music recording artist with girl group Kleshay, who were the European arena support act for Lionel Richie
- First Black female continuity presenter in CITV (Children’s ITV) history
- First on-air talent to launch BET International across the UK and Europe
- Spoke at the International Society for Bipolar Disorders, Iceland
- JAAQ.com (Just Ask Any Question) lived-experience contributor specialising in bipolar disorder
- Three-time TRIC Award winner with the 'A Place in the Sun' presenting team
- Screen Nation Award for Best Presenter
- Won the Media Award at the Wise Women Awards
- Named Best TV & Radio Presenter by Divas of Colour
- Won Best Presenter at the JPA Awards
- Named Personality of the Year at the C-Hub Awards
How to hire Leah Charles-King
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Leah Charles-King for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do NOT accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
